Stephen Horvath, President of the Oxford Union, said: "I am sure that there will be people who challenge the value of free speech in relation to this invitation.

"The event with Mr Bannon provides an opportunity for our members to hear from an individual who has been at the centre of the rise in right-wing populism, as well as to critically question and debate the ideas and rhetoric of Mr Bannon.

"It is only through listening to the opinions of others that we can fully understand those opinions.

"Whether we are inclined to agree or disagree with them, there is a profound intellectual value in critically thinking through why it is that we agree or disagree instead or just rejecting them out of hand."

'Dangerous and negligent'

Campaign groups, Oxford Stand Up To Racism and Oxford Unite Against Fascism, have organised the protest, and said that they wanted to send a message that he was "not welcome”.

Ian Mckendrick from Oxford Stand Up To Racism said that Mr Bannon was looking to figures such as Tommy Robinson as a "key figure for his movement".